Machine for zig-zag folds using releasably mounted folding plates



June 27, 1967 GALES 3,328,025

MACHINE FOR ZIGZAG FOLDS USING RELEASABLY MOUNTED FOLDING PLATES vFiledJune 15, 1965 n1 l 11111111111111/04) A United States Patent 3,328,025MACHINE FOR ZIG-ZAG FOLDS USING RELEAS- ABLY MOUNTED FOLDING PLATESDonald M. Gales, 9410 Warren St., Silver Spring, Md. 20910 Filed June15, 1965, Ser. No. 464,107 13 Claims. (Cl. 270-69) ABSTRACT OF THEDISCLOSURE A machine is described which is for automatically producingzig-zag or accordion folds in rolls of material, such as rolled stripcharts used in science and industry, thus allowing them'to be easilyinspected or the data thereon to be processed. The folding is done by abackand-forth moving conveyor which carries the roll of material,entwining the material among rigid plates or cards that are releasedsingly onto the material by the action of the conveyor. The entwinedpaper is creased, then pulled free of the plates as a stack of uniformzig-zag folds.

This invention relates to a machine for automatically and continuouslyfolding rolls of paper in zig-zag or ac cordion fashion.

Many recording devices used in industry and in research utilize rollsof-paper as a recording medium on which is traced or printed acontinuous record of information from the recording instrument orprinting device, and to which future reference will be made for therecorded information. Most recorders are built so that the recordedinformation is rolled up on a take-up roll after the data are printed onthe paper. When the data are to be inspected after the roll has beenremoved from the recorder, it is necessary to unroll the paper to anyportion of the record to be inspected. This may be the initial portionof the roll necessitating the unrolling of the entire roll. Futurereference to another portion of the same roll willrequire anotherrolling of the chart to the required portion.

: Thus, in order to facilitate examination of rolls of such paperrecords, it is customary to fold these records in zig-zag or accordionfolds which enables the observer to immediately open the roll to anyportion just as he would open a book. Once the roll is folded the dataare available once and for all, but this folding is a tedious, timeconsuming operation when done by hand.

In view of the above, it is the primary object of this invention toprovide a machine for automatically and-continuously folding paper rollsinto zig-zag or accordion type folds whereby considerable time is savedin preparing records for examination or data extraction from any portionof the paper, or preparing records for convenient storage.

Another object is to providea portable machine of the above type whichis mechanically rugged, reliable, ;foolproof in operation, and uses aminimum number of moving parts. a

Another object is to provide a folding machine which may be operated byunskilled personnel.

These objects and advantages of the invention are atflat position belowthe card, or plate, and with each push 3,323,925 Patented June 27, 1967or pull motion the roll passes over each new card that has fallen thusadding another fold to the pile of folds intertwined among the fallencards. When the cards are all released and laying flat with intertwinedfolded chart paper, the cards are pulled free of the folds and reset tobegin dropping as before, and in a short time the entire roll is a pileof accordion folds, ready for inspection or for utilizing the dataprinted upon the chart paper.

These general objectives, and such other objects and advantages as mayhereinafter appear, will be pointed out in the manner illustrativelyembodied in the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIGURE 1 is a perspective view of the paper folding machine of thisinvention with a portion of the folding cards cut away to show the cardreleasing mechanism.

FIGURE 2 shows the unrolling supply of paper intertwining among fallenfolding cards, and shows the operation of the card releasing mechanism.

Referring to FIGURE 1, the machine comprises of a substantiallyhorizontal base 1 adapted to rest upon a table top, and to which base 1is attached a rectangular frame 2 including parallel side members 3, 4mounted at right angles to the plane of the base 1. The side memher 3 israbbeted at 5 on its upper edge for substantially the length of themember 3, and the side member 4 has a groove 6 formed near the top edgeand which extends parallel to the base 1 for substantially the length ofthe member 4. The rabbet 5 and groove 6 are formed at the same heightsabove the base 1. A guiding means 7 is fitted between the side members 3and 4 to slide freely but snugly in the groove 6 and the rabbet 5. Atopthe guiding means 7 and at approximately a right angle to the sidemember 3 is mounted a conveyor 9 so as to be parallel to the base 1. Theconveyor 9 and guide means 7 are removable from the rabbet 5 and groove6 by a lifting motion on the conveyor 9. A slot 11 is formed lengthwisein the conveyor 9 of sufficient length to accommodate the maximum widthof paper to be folded. The roll of paper 8 to be folded is mounted on aspindle 10 parallel to and above the slot 11 at a height slightlygreater than the radius of the maximum size roll of paper that is to befolded. The spindle 10 is fitted into recesses 12 in vertical supports13 and 14 mounted upon the conveyor 9 at the ends of the slot 11. Thus,a roll of paper 8 which is to be folded is mounted upon the spindle 10with the unrolling paper fed through the slot 11 and onto the base 1.

A plurality of folding cards 15 which are made of thin, somewhat rigidmaterial such as pressed board, plastic or metal sheets, or otherlikematerial are each provided with a hinge 16 made of flexible thinmaterial binding the fold-. ing cards 15 to binders 17 each consistingof a strip of material of the same thickness as the folding card 15. Aconvenient embodiment of the folding cards uses conventional pressedboard binders with hinges of cloth. The folding card binders 17 aresecurely fastened together by fastening means such as conventionalprong-type fasteners 18. Thinness in the cards is desirable to permitthe greatest number of cards to be put together compactly in book form.

The plurality of folding cards 15 that are bound together in book formare securely mounted on the end of the base 1 opposite the side member 3and beyond the end of the conveyor 9 at such a distance as to allow thefolding cards 15 to overlap several inches onto the strip of theunrolling chart 19 as will be described below. The

. mounting means of the bound folding cards 15 is by a pair of stanchionpins 20 extending upward from base 1 in this embodiment of the machine.The pins 20 enter into holes 21 in the binder 17. The pins 20 hold thefolding cards 15 securely to prevent twisting when tension is on thecards by the folding procedure described below,

The length of the folding cards measured in the direction parallel tothe side member 3 determines the length of the fold that will be placedin the unrolling chart paper 19. This length of fold can be adjusted byusing bound stacks of folding cards pre-cut to the desired length offold, and by adjusting the stop pins 22 and 23 installed in the sidemember 4 at the appropriate positions to stop the sliding guide means 7when it reaches the positions for the release of folding cards one byone as is described next.

The card releasing mechanism consists of notches in the card edges toprovide alternate clearances at the card edges for abutment means on theconveyor 9, such as abutment arms. These arms, cooperating with thenotches, set as car-d releasing arms.

FIGURE 2 shows the card releasing mechanism in more detail.

The releasing arms 24 and are mounted on the spindle support 14 of theconveyor 9 parallel to the base 1 and parallel to the face of thefolding cards 15 which are tilted into a substantially vertical positionand which lean against the arms 24 and 25 as the arms 24 and 25 moveback and forth in co-operation with the conveyor 9. The ends of the arms24 and 25 are fitted with wheels 26 and 27 which are for reducingfriction when the arms 24 and 25 are sliding across the face of thetilted folding cards 15. Notches 28 and 29 are cut into a vertical edgeof each folding card 15 as seen in their til-ted position. The height ofthe notches 28 and 29 above the base 1 is such that a releasing arm 24or 25 slides into a notch 28 or 29 when the releasing arms 24 and 25 aremoving back and forth in co-operation with the conveyor 9. The notchedcards 15 are stacked and bound with the notches 28 and 29 at alternatingvertical edges of the folding card pile 15. The depth of each notch 28or 29 inward toward the center of a card 15 is such as to allow the endof the arm 24 or 25 to support the remaining upward-tilted stack ofbound folding cards 15, and the vertical height of the notches 28 and 29is such as to allow the folding card 15 being released to pass the arm24 or 25 without contacting it. The length of each arm 24 or 25 isslightly less than the maximum radius of the largest roll of paper 8 tobe folded plus the depth of the notch 28 or 29 in order for the fallingcard 15 to fall clear of the paper roll 8 and the arm 24 or 25.

An attachment for creasing the folding paper is included in theillustrated embodiment of the paper folding machine. The creaserconsists of an inverted U-frame 32 rotatively mounted adjacent to thespindle support 13 so that the U-f-rame 32 straddles the conveyor 9. Theguide means handle 3th is securely fastened in the middle of the arch ofthe inverted U-frame 32 through a hole 33 in the support 1 3. The handleis free to rotate in the hole 33 and in the handle support 34. Theoperators wrist action upon handle 30 causes the U-frame 32 to pivotallyrotate through an arc. At each of the lower extremities of the invertedU-frame 32 is a rigidly mounted axle 36 at right angles to U-frame 32and pari and the paper threaded through slot 11 and onto base 1 where itis held in place until several folding cards 15 have fallen. Havingloaded and threaded the paper roll 8, the pile of folding cards 15 ismounted on the stanchion pins 20, and the cards 15 are tilted into theirsubstantially vertical position resting against the card releaser arms24 and 25. By using handle 30 the operator begins the back and forthmotion of the sliding guide means 7 which causes the paper 3 tounroll.At the end of the initial push stroke by the operator, the card releaserarm 24 slides into the notch 29. The first upright folding card 15, nolonger being supported, falls freely past the arm 24 and past the paperroll 8 onto the unrolling paper 19, the card 15 having pivoted at itshinge 16. When said card 15 falls it lays upon a portion of the unrolledpaper 19. The operator having reached the end of the push stroke byhitting stop pin 22 and releasing the first upright folding card 15, nowbegins the pull stroke which causes more paper to unroll and lay overthe top of the fallen card 15. The pull motion draws the paper 19 t-autover the edge of fallen card 15. At the end of the pull stroke the aboveaction repeats when the releasing arm 25 falls into notch 28 in the nextfolding card 15 from the pile, causing another card to fall to asubstantially horizontal position. The operator continues this pushpullmotion and the sequence of events repeats, and the unrolling paper 19pulls taut over each folding card 15 in turn.

It will be noted that the slot 11 is relatively rough and providessufficient frictional drag on the material fed therethrough to cause thewithdrawn material to be drawn substantially taut against the side edgesof the previously released cards 15 as the conveyor 9 is moved over thereleased cards.

Creases are formed in the unrolled paper 19 by the cylindrical cre-asers35 which pass over the unrolled paper 19 in advance of the movement ofthe conveyor 9. By the operators wrist action, the handle 30 is rotatedso as to swing the advancing creaser 35 downward each time the conveyormovement is reversed.

A-n embodiment of the paper folding machine without a creaser wouldrequire the operator to occasionally utilize his free hand by passing itover the unrolling paper 1 9 to form the creases.

When the entire pile of folding cards 15 has fallen upon the unrollingchart, the operator pulls the stack of folding cards 15 from thestanchion pins 20,and holding the folded chart paper 31 with one hand,he draws the cards 15 from the folded paper 31. He resets the cards 15on the pins 20 behind the releasing arms 24, 25 and the operatorcontinues his folding by the push-pull operation until the entire rollof paper is folded into zig-zag or accordion folds ready for inspectionor filing.

It will be evident from the above description that the present inventionprovides a mechanically simple paper folding machine which may bereadily operated by unskilled personnel, and which will quickly andaccurately form a series of accordion folds in a roll of material of anysize.

While the invention has been described by reference to rolled papermaterial, it will be readily apparent that the invention is not limitedto such material, but may be used to fold or spread any rolled flexiblesheet material such as fabric, resinous sheet, or the like.

Many variations and modifications of the disclosed exemplary embodimentwill be obvious to those skilled in the art. It is therefore intendedthat the invention include all such modifications as fall within thescope of the appended claims.

What is claimed is:

1. In a machine of the character described for fol-ding rolls of paperor other pliable material into piles of accordion-type or zig-zag folds,a base, a guiding means mounted on the base, a conveyor mounted to moveback and forth with said guiding means, support means on said conveyorfor holding a roll of material to be folded in a position over the basesubstantially perpendicular to the guiding means, a plurality of rigidplates mounted on said base opposite said guiding means, means forproviding lateral alternate clearances at plate edges, and abutmentmeans on the conveyor engageable with the j plates so. as to normallyhold the cards in substantially upright positions, said abutment meansbeing movable with the'conveyor so as to travel across the faces of theplates responsive to movement of the conveyor and being oriented so asto move through the lateral plate clearance at the edge of eachinnermost plate, whereby to release the last-named plate and allow it tofall toward the base in overlying relation to material from said roll.

2. The machine of claim 1, and means on the conveyor to spread thematerial from the roll over the base responsive to the movement of theconveyor along the guiding means.

3. The machine of claim 1, and wherein said support means comprises aspindle extending substantially perpendicular to said guiding means.

4. The machine of claim 1, and wherein said abutment means compriseshorizontal arms rigidly mounted on the end of said conveyor andrespectively extending in the directions of movement of the conveyor.

5. The machine of claim 4, and anti-friction means on the armsupportingly engageable with the faces of the plates.

6. The machine of claim 1, and wherein the plates are provided at theirmargins with binding means for fastening the plates together and withflexible hinge means connecting the plates to said binding means.

7. The machine of claim 6, and wherein the binding means for therespective plates are superimposed, and means fastening the superimposedbinding means together, whereby the plates are united in substantiallybook-like form and can be handled as a unit.

8. The machine of claim 7, and upstanding positioning means on the baseengage-able through the superimposed binding means for releasablyholding the fastened superimposed binding means against movement on thebase but allowing unitary removal and replacement of the united plates.

9. The machine of claim 7, wherein the united plates have clearances atalternate side edges sufficient to allow a released plate to fall freeof the abutment means when the abutment means passes through an edgeclearance into supporting engagement with the remaining upright plates.

10. The machine of claim 9, and spreading means on the conveyor belowthe support means engageable with material from the roll to spread thematerial substantially horizontally over the base responsive to themovement of the conveyor, said spreading means providing sufiicientfrictional drag on the material to cause withdrawn material to be drawnsubstantially taut against the side edges of the previously releasedplates.

11. The machine of claim 7, and wherein the united plates areinterchangeable with other united plates of different dimensions,whereby the resulting lengths of zig-zag folds are of correspondingdifferent dimensions.

12. The machine of claim 9 and means to stop the movement of theconveyor on said guiding means when the abutment means passes throughsaid edge clearance and releases a plate.

13. The machine of claim 1, and a crease forming means mounted on andextending below the conveyor for exerting a downward force upon thematerial being folded.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,281,869 5/1942 Brasseur 1014182,549,386 4/1951 Reigh 27061 2,659,597 11/1953 Shaak et al. 270313,150,872 9/1964 Lockwood et al. 270-79 EUGENE R. CAPOZIO, PrimaryExaminer.

P. WILLIAMS, Assistant Examiner.

1. IN A MACHINE OF THE CHARACTER DESCRIBED FOR FOLDING ROLLS OF PAPER OROTHER PLIABLE MATERIAL INTO PILES OF ACCORDION-TYPE OR ZID-ZAG FOLDS, ABASE, A GUIDING MEANS MOUNTED ON THE BASE, A CONVEYOR MOUNTED TO MOVEBACK AND FORTH WITH SAID GUIDING MEANS, SUPPORT MEANS ON SAID CONVEYORFOR HOLDING A ROLL OF MATERIAL TO BE FOLDED IN A POSITION OVER THE BASESUBSTANTIALLY PERPENDICULAR TO THE GUIDING MEANS, A PLURALITY OF RIGIDPLATES MOUNTED ON SAID BASE OPPOSITE SAID GUIDING MEANS, MEANS FORPROVIDING LATERAL ALTERNATE CLEARANCES AT PLATE EDGES, AND ABUTMENTMEANS ON THE CONVEYOR ENGAGEABLE WITH THE PLATES SO AS TO NORMALLY HOLDTHE CARDS IN SUBSTANTIALLY UPRIGHT POSITIONS, SAID ABUTMENT MEANS BEINGMOVABLE